The corpse of a suspected bank robber who died after becoming wedged in an air vent has been discovered in the French city of Lyon.

Rescue workers on Tuesday were trying to keep a half-rotted corpse intact to try to determine if the dead man was trying to rob French bank Credit Foncier.

Employees had been complaining of a bad smell in their bank branch in the city of Lyon since last September, and on Monday a worker trying to find the source of the stench discovered the body.

The dead man became stuck in a bend in the vent and investigators were trying to find out "if it was a homeless man seeking refuge or an attempted break-in that went wrong", said local prosecutor Marc Desert.

Firefighters and plumbing specialists were planning to widen the 20 inch shaft to get better access to the body and keep it in one piece to help police inquiries.

Lyon prosecutor Marc Desert said: "It may be the body of an unlucky burglar who got stuck.